Last month, I started a new on-campus class. It's been good to get out of the house one night a week. The only downside is that Bruce has a class the following night, so we go two straight days barely seeing each other.
The last full week of March, however, Bruce took off from work. We meant to take a vacation and go somewhere, but our financial situation made us change our minds. So instead, Bruce took a "staycation."
Sometimes I am far too practical. We talked about doing fun, free activities every day, but I also wanted to take care care of business. I saw Bruce's time off as an opportunity to schedule some long overdue appointments. On Monday, I had my blood drawn for my thyroid and then went to work. Tuesday, we each went to the eye doctor. On Wednesday, I attended a work meeting, which I normally wouldn't be able to do without arranging a sitter. Bruce told his parents we would have dinner with them on Thursday night. None of these activities took more than few hours, but with a little one who needs to take naps and such, they pretty much ended any hope of adventure.
Late morning Friday, Emmie had her weekly park district class. Bruce and I walked to the local café like I would usually do by myself. For 45 minutes, we sat and sipped and chatted like adults. It was the first time we were alone as a couple all week. Since the weather was better than it had been in a while, after Emmie's class we drove straight to Starved Rock State Park. We were pleased to discover that it's only 50 minutes away from our house. I've never been there. Bruce thinks he went there as a kid. We hiked as much as we could with Emmie and enjoyed the fresh, crisp air of the outdoors. |
| Overlooking the Illinois River |
On Saturday, we had plans to see some friends in the city and explore Little Italy. We ate pasta, visited the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame, and bought goodies at a little Italian grocery. It was a great time, but as two families with two excitable toddlers to look after, a few short hours later, we were completely worn out.
The most thrilling thing we did on Sunday was finally filing our taxes. At first we contemplated going to an accountant because we bought the house last year, but a colleague of Bruce's who also works at a national accounting chain told him it wasn't necessary. She told him we would be paying for basically the same process as the free online programs available. She was right; it turned out not to be complicated at all. The good news is, we will be receiving much more money back than in recent years! Yet, while in the past we would've spent our refund on something fun, this year we will be putting it all towards debt. We really want to get out from under all our bills. If we can slowly pay off our credit cards, our daily living and our future will be much better off.
I think Bruce was slightly disappointed by his vacation. Sure, we got to spend nine whole days together as a family, but the weather wasn't great, and it was mundane overall. One day, there was a mangled rabbit carcass in our backyard (it looked like it had been dropped by a hawk), and he had to dispose of it. He kept joking that when his coworkers asked what he did on his week off, he would reply, "Oh, you know, cleaned up a dead bunny. Good times!"
As for me, I found that Bruce's continual presence disrupts the rigid order I keep throughout the week when he's at work. I was lazier; the house was messier. Do other stay-at-home moms notice that, too? It's not that Bruce doesn't help around the house, he definitely does! It's just that I have this routine during the week as far as cleaning and such while my husband's working, and when he's around, I drop it in favor of doing whatever: playing together with Emmie, going shopping, cuddling and watching TV on the couch during nap time. All of that is wonderful, but for a Type A personality like myself, the lack of regularity throws me off my game.
Nonetheless, our time with Bruce went by too fast. It was suddenly Sunday night, and he was setting his alarm for the morning, knowing that he only had a few more vacation days for the rest of the year to look forward to.
When Monday came, everything went back to normal. But that didn't last long...
No comments:
Post a Comment